Come with Me
by Lilly The Omega Wolf
Summary: Coco Bandicoot and Dingodile discover something between them when they find themselves on the same team. Now they have to decide if their budding relationship is worth risking everything. A CocoDile story. Also contains Crash/Tawna shipping.
1. Chapter 1

"Ya thrashed me mate. No worries...but you'll soon be up against much worse." The harsh tone of Dingodile lingered in the frigid air as Crash Bandicoot danced his victory dance in the icy cavern.

Although his words had been true, his longtime enemy Crash Bandicoot had still managed to overcome the 'much worse.' That included his master, Cortex, who once again found nothing but complete and utter defeat at the hands of that bandicoot. Even with the powers of Uka Uka to back him up, the mad scientist still lost.

However, there was one silver lining. That pesky bandicoot's cute sister.

Yes, cute.

Ever since he had first clapped eyes on her, Dingo had resigned himself to that fact that she somehow cast a peculiar spell over him.

After his creation by Doctor Nitrus Brio, Dingo had been a happy hybrid. Torch this, take out that. Blow this up. Set this on fire, set that on fire. Life was simple. Life was fun. However, his world turned upside down by the release of Uka Uka. That mask that had commanded Cortex to send his allies to fetch Crash's power crystals. It was then that he caught his first glimpse of her.

It turned out she was more than just a pretty face. She alone had defeated Cortex's second in command; Doctor N. Gin. He could hardly believe his own ears when he overheard that.

Then to make this strange feeling even worse, he had humiliatingly lost to Crash and his sister in a series of races that determined the fate of the planet. All throughout the races, Dingo had kept a close eye on her, watching as much as he could without seeming suspicious. In the final races, Dingo had even managed to beat her several times. But of course, it just had to be Crash Bandicoot who qualified to go on and beat Oxide. As usual, that pesky bandicoot beat the bad guy and saved their planet. It was odd, but Dingodile knew that a part of him wouldn't have minded if she had won.

Her skills with technology also left Dingo in awe of her. It also gave him ideas. With his pyrotechnics and her technical skills, the two could melt anything! As the rough hybrid minion sat there thinking of his odd feelings for the sheela who was supposed to be his enemy, a silly grin crossed his face. Such odd, annoying, yet wonderful feelings had been coming and going from some time now and there appeared to be nothing he could do to change that. Sure in days gone by, he would have loved to roast himself a shemale bandicoot, but now... Now he wasn't so sure. That was the worst part about these feelings. The uncertainty. Dingo had no idea what they were, or why he was bugged by such useless feelings, but sure as the Auzie desert was hot, they were not welcome.

Yet these feelings also graced him with a strange sense of peace whenever he had been in her presence.

This was stupid. Dumb. He should not be at peace! Peace was for the weak. He was the feared Dingodile, Dr Nitrus Brio's creation. He was designed to be an engine of destruction. His one love was fire.

 _Yes... Fire._

That pretty bandicoot.

Fire.

That pretty bandico- Dammit mind! Forget that bandicoot!

Fire.

Burning...

Flames...

Peace...

Wait... What?

Dingo growled. This was hopeless. He could not get that darn sheela bandicoot out of his head. Nothing made sense, he had tried all his favourite pastimes and nothing would completely dispel her from his mind. As he wandered down the bleak hallways of his master's latest base in search of his flamethrower, he allowed his mind to drift back to where these cursed feelings turned from a pesky spark to a mighty flame.

 _Them was the days. The bash. Back before the latest screw up that is Crunch Bandicoot. The days of the tournament to resolve the fight between good and evil. Them was the best days of me life. A time where I was able to get to know that beautiful bandicoot better. Life had just begun to go a juicy new way. We won. But in the end, Tiny and I still had to return our master, Cortex. After all, win or lose, you can't change who you are, can you?_

It was just another day in the lab. Well, the minion's quarters, the poorest section of the temporary base. Dingodile wished for some action. How long had it been since they lost the races against that bandicoot?

At least he had recently raced against the prettiest thing in the world. That was something at least.

A sudden shiver tingled through his system. He blinked as the cold confines of Cortex's base had been replaced with a ancient stone courtyard. At the centre, Aku-aku and Uka-uka hovered but his breath caught as he saw beyond the edge of stonework an abyss of darkness extended endlessly out in all directions.

Dingo paused. Why was that annoying bandicoot suddenly standing here as well? And why had several other of Cortex's minions appeared beside him too? Where were they? What was going on?

Dingo blocked out the masks as they blabbed on about a way to end their feud once and for all. All Dingodile could think of was roasting that bandicoot. This was a perfect opportunity.

To his surprise, that tingling sensation returned and Dingo found himself on the same team as the very bandicoot he wanted to roast alive. _'Even the sides? Even the sides!? But, but now I'm stuck with that bandicoot!'_ Then something clicked inside his mind as he eyed up his new opponents. This was his chance to openly betray Cortex. And there was nothing his old master could do about it! That made him smile. This could be _fun_!

Then the female bandicoot on the far side of Crash caught his eye. _'I'm on the same side as that sheela. I'm actually on the same side as that cute sheela bandicoot!'_ A grin sparked to life on his face. Maybe he could get used to being a conscripted good fella if it allowed him to spend time with this cutie, and try and figure out what was going on with the strange feelings he felt for her.

Sometime later, in one of the ancient ruins small rooms, Aku Aku held a quick meeting with his team.

"Uka Uka and I have agreed, you all will be split into teams of two for the upcoming challenges." Aku Aku spoke to his team as they gathered around their witch doctor. The main blab was over and Dingodile felt obliged to pay attention now that the bad guys were off at their own spot.

"First you must win trophies, then Gems and crystals. To advance from one warp room to the next you must also defeat each room's boss. The team with the most points gets to face off against Oxide. If there is no clear victor by the defeat of Oxide, the final boss, the duo who defeats Oxide will be allowed to pick a single opponent for a final face off, one on one."

Aku Aku paused for a moment to allow this all to sink in. He paid special attention to the two conscripts, Tiny and Dingodile. Dingo could feel the presence of the mask as it probed his mind. Something had prompted Aku Aku to pick him. While Dingo didn't really care what it was, he was glad to be here, even if it was listening to another speech.

"Crash, I want you with Tiny. Coco, please accept Dingodile as your partner."

"Okay," the peppy bandicoot replied, her gaze travelled to the mutant croc and faltered, uncertain.

 _'Partner?!'_ Dingo could hardly believe it. Was his hearing defective?

Coco walked up to the hybrid and did her best to smile up at him. "Looks like your with me."

After the shock of the moment wore off, Dingodile found his voice once more along with his toothy smile, "yea."

The colossal tiger drew Dingo's attention as he wandered over to Crash. "Tiny with Crash, together we crush puny Cortex." The bandicoot in question grinned back then pulled off a quick Crash dance. Tiny did his best at copying it only to fail, crashing into the stone floor.

Laughter broke out from the group and Tiny joined in. Crash offered his downed teammate a hand up and collapsed forward as the tiger accepted it. Dingo failed to stifle another laugh as his old foe hit the ground.

Tiny rose and offered the orange marsupial a hand up. As the half crocodile witnessed Crash accept the offering, Dingo decided to give both bandicoots a chance. Maybe this odd team could work. His gaze settled on Coco and she smiled with a little bit more enthusiasm up at him.

"I think this will be fun," grinned Dingodile.

"I think I'm looking forward to it now too." Coco Bandicoot replied.

* * *

Dingodile spun the TNT crate and grinned as his ears were graced with a boom! This crash bash contest in the forest was fun!

 **"Blue Team Wins!"** The announcer declared.

Dingodile threw up his arms in victory and cheered. He allowed his gaze to get drawn to the bandicoot on the other side of the arena as she joined him in their moment of victory. They did it, together they won their first match and they both survived!

With a swish and a tingle, the pair found themselves back in the warp room. Dingodile smiled down at Coco and was rewarded with a shy smile back.

"Good job there sheela."

"Thank you. You weren't too bad yourself."

Before any further conversation could be had, Tiny appeared. The big cat growled menacingly.

Coco quickly made sure something was between her and the dangerous mutant. Lucky for Dingo, that something was himself.

He put his arms up to further take the attention away from Coco, "woah there matey. What happened, did you lose?"

Another angry roar.

Crash appeared with a splat, face first on the floor.

Ignoring the previous threat, Coco was quick to rush to her brother. She pulled him up and gave him a quick once-over. "Are you okay, did you win?"

Crash shook his head quickly picked himself up, spun around and gave himself a once over. With her brother okay, Coco once again shifted slightly away from Tiny.

"Did youse win?" Tiny asked.

"Yep." Dingo pointed behind himself at the portal to Crate Crush. There hanging in mid-air was a trophy.

* * *

 **"Red Team wins!"**

Cortex and Koala Kong jeered at Dingo as the four came to rest on their adapted pogo sticks.

Dingodile sighed. He tried. It was a lot of fun but sadly no trophy. If it was down to him, he would have won on his solo score, but Coco just could not seem to score enough points to boost his impressive solo score into a team win.

The pair felt a now familiar swish and tingle and they were teleported back to the warp room. Dingo sighed. In days gone by, now would be the perfect time to clip his companion over the head for her repeated poor performance in Pogo Painter. But it was clear that this was not one of those days. She was too precious to treat so callously. For reasons he failed to comprehend, he knew that had to do his best to protect her from his inner bad guy, least she became even more fearful of him.

Coco was quick to step away from the hybrid toward her brother who was busy dancing. Beside him, Tiny watched with an amused look on his face. At least one of the two teams had once again secured a victory.

* * *

Bearinater fired his cannon and took a chunk off the rapidly diminishing platform Dingo and Coco shared.

With a snarl, Dingo pushed a newly arrived robo polar bear off into the frozen waters. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Coco struggling against two of the robots. She got shunted very close to the jagged edge where one of the shells had landed. Without a second thought, Dingo gave his polar bear a kick in the side to hurry it toward the duo of robots as they moved in to finish their job. He shoved one into the other and was rewarded by them both turning on him.

"Come on mateys, it's on!" he yelled as he gave his mount another rough heel into its side. He charged them both, carefully timing his charge, but still got shunted backwards by their combined efforts.

The tables turned as Coco's polar bear rammed into the side of one, shoving it into the other and with an added push from Digo forcing his ride onwards, they both sailed into the freezing waters.

"That's great Dingo! I think we've nearly won!" Cheered Coco.

A boom sounded and dingo felt cold fear shoot through his system as he saw where the shell was headed.

"Look out!" He gave a frantic jab at his ride to knock his companion away from the side of the platform just in time for the explosive to land.

He landed on his butt in the warp room with a clear view into the portal to the Bearinater's boss fight.

Crash gave him a worried look while Tiny growled at him angrily and lightly smacked the back of his head. He shot his fellow mutant a dirty look before his gaze returned to the portal. What he had just done was madness. He should have let Coco take the hit for her lack of attention to the boss. Yet there she was, safe and still in action. Outnumbered 3 robots to one combatant on a tiny spit of metal.

Yet as he watched, unable to tear his vision away from the fight, she not only beat back the final trio of attacking robo polar bears, but also dealt the final blow to the Bearinater.

A dancing Coco Bandicoot was teleported from the arena to his side and without thinking, Dingodile threw his arms around her and gave her a tight hug. After a few seconds, his brain registered what exactly he was doing and he flinched, about to withdraw from the inappropriate gesture. Instead, his heart swelled with an odd glow as he felt the hug returned.

"I'm glad yer safe..." he murmured.

"Thanks for saving me back there." Her reply was soft, yet the effect on his system was profound. He now knew that his sacrifice had been the perfect thing to do, it was right to protect her with his own life. Whatever the risk, she was worth it. Now if only he could find out _why_ she was so special.

He withdrew and grinned down at her. "Ah, think nothing of it. Yer worth it."

As she smiled shyly back up at him, his awareness of the rest of the warp room receded. Crash, Tiny and even the freshly reappeared mask didn't matter. Only Coco did. Dingodile now knew that his actions in the games would never be the same. He had someone to watch out now, and he knew in some special way it was his duty to continue to look after her. Since she clearly appreciated it, he would throw himself at this duty with everything he had.

* * *

 **"Blue Team Wins!"** The announcer declared.

Dingodile threw his arms up in victory. Coco had just helped him secure the gem for the snow bash.

Suddenly, Dingo found himself back in the warp room for his team. The first thing his brain registered was warm arms as his teammate threw herself on him.

"We won! Thank you Dingodile."

"Ya welcome, Sheela," a grin settled on his face. He could get used to this. Coco's praise was even better than the award they had just won.

"Where's the other two?" He asked as they withdrew awkwardly from one another.

"I think they're still going. Let's watch their round!" Coco rushed over to the Metal fox portal and peered in.

Dingo found himself drawn to her side and together they watched as Crash and Tiny fired shots at Cortex and Kowala Kong as they navigated around the constantly shifting mini metal maze in their tanks. Dingodile sniggered as Crash took hit from Koala Kong and his tank caught on fire. One more hit and the bandicoot would surely explode.

"Oooof," the air left Digo so suddenly it took him a moment to realize it was the tiny female bandicoot who had jabbed him in the ribs.

"Don't be rude please, he's my brother and he's on your side too."

"Whatever ya say." Dingo grinned as Crash took a shot from Cortex and exploded.

Coco spotted his grin and slapped him across the snout.

"Hey!" Dingo pulled back, unable to believe the stinging feeling that lanced through his face. How dare she do that! Why he ort to... do what?

"Don't laugh." Her anger was broken by Crash as he landed ungracefully on his backside.

"Brother, are you okay?"

Crash quickly nodded and Dingo wiped the grin off his face as Crash looked up at him for additional support.

Another explosion.

Tiny landed with a thump next to Crash. He growled and smacked the ground, his gaze upon the portal as the crystal icon greyed out into white. They had lost a power crystal to the bad guys. This was not good.

* * *

 _Sky Balls._

Whoever invented this round was a nutter.

Dingo was sure of that fact as he frantically deflected a ball only to miss two more that sailed right down his goal.

As more and more balls filed the arena Dingo found himself struggling more and more to flick them toward his two opponents, Rilla Roo and Doctor N. Brio. His frantic gaze followed one ball he accidentally bounced right toward Coco's goal. At the last moment, she saved it and shot it right down N. Brio's goal. Several more balls flew her way but none made it past her swift and precise defences. Ball after ball continued to come her way yet Coco repelled almost all with expert precision. Suddenly Dingo felt his own hover ship stutter.

 _Oh no!_

He had been so busy looking at Coco and her skills he had forgotten to watch the balls coming his way from his opponents. With an explosion, he was out.

He landed face first on the hard ground. _Loosin' sucks!_

He sat himself up and glanced around. _Good, no one else saw that. How shameful._

His gaze returned to the portal just in time to see Rilla Roo explode. He grinned. _That sheila sure knows how to defend her goal._

His gaze continued to follow her every move as she zipped back and forth. Neither her nor N. Brio let up in their defences as more and more balls entered the arena.

Suddenly a large wave of moving balls caused the platform to shift and one of the thrusters cut out. Every ball sailed toward Coco. Dingo's eyes flew wide open as she blocked the main bunch. However, enough balls got through to send her score to a big fat 0.

Although he could not hear it, he could see N. Brio jeering at her as her hover ship exploded. They had lost. Another trophy to the enemy, Dingo had just lost them the fifth and final round, the tiebreaker to secure the three points needed to win. A failure, all because he could not keep his attention from his teammate. Was he losing his edge?

He caught Coco as she fell and despite his awkward, half crouched position with her in his arms it felt good to know he had just saved her again, even if only from a fall.

"What happened back there?"

"Whatda mean?" Dingo replied, his tone guarded.

"You know. You suddenly stopped blocking all the balls they sent your way in the final round. Are you okay?"

"Yea, yea. I'm fine."

"Really?" She cocked her head, concerned and probably doing her best to analyse what exactly had caused him to lose the way he had.

"Look, I just lost me concentration. It won't happen again."

"Really?"

"Yes." Dingo's tense tone hinted at a refusal to open up and share with his teammate.

Coco stepped closer, their eyes met and she held his gaze earnestly, "well, I did catch you looking my way. If you like what you see, you're welcome to look at me after or before a match. But please don't do that again."

"Yea. Okay. You uh... sure I'm allowed to look at you?" He asked, incredulously.

Coco nervously contemplated his question before she nodded. A blush settled upon her muzzle and Dingodile found himself compelled to smile. This was his work. He had made her face do that. Whatever it was, it felt good.

"Oof," he said suddenly, pain searing across his ribs. "But seriously," Coco said, a worried expression set across her face. "Don't do that again."

* * *

"Aaahh that was somethin' else..." A sigh escaped the mutant crocodile.

"What?" Pinstripe turned face Dingodile, confused.

The mutant croc froze in the doorway to the armoury. _'What am I doin' here? Crikey, I said that out loud? An' whats Pinstripe an' Tiny doin' here?'_

After a moment, Dingo realized his silence may seem suspicious,"Nothin.' Okay?"

"Really?" the gangster checked, curious.

The room was silent for a few moments as Dingo's mind tried to think of something good enough to shut Pinstripe up. "What ya' doin' here anyways mate?"

"Amo run. Cortex wants me to hit a target. So me tommy gun and I get to have some fun." Pinstripe grinned as he attached a fresh magazine to his tommy gun.

"Really? I ain't heard nothin' about that."

"Yea, well I'm off. See you two chumps later," Pinstripe chucked as he strolled out past the hybrid in the doorway.

Dingo sighed as he wandered over to an ammo crate near the middle of the room and plonked himself down on it.

"You tinkin' of bandicoot again?" Tiny piped up. The giant tiger hefted the pitchfork he was toying with, stood then hurled it over Dingo's head and into a barrel on the other side of the room.

"Oi! What you do that for?" Dingo instinctively reached up and checked the fur on the top of his head.

"Tiny think you think too much. You stop thinking."

"Thanks, genius," muttered Dingodile as he tried to still his racing heart. As Tiny was one of the few creatures in existence that Dingo could so much as consider a friend, he figured he'd let Tiny off for nearly impaling him this time. If he had actually been struck by the weapon in this base, he would not be so lucky as to respawn. "I think I just need to find a way to get her out of me head. Don't worry about me mate."

"Okay," the simple-minded big cat shrugged, before he wandered over to retrieve his weapon.

* * *

Dingodile had never encountered anything that matched his thirst to torch things and now all those thoughts had been snuffed out like matches in a hurricane. The one thing in the world that Dingo did not want to burn for fun stood before him. Dingodile stood, slouched over as he gazed into the most captivating eyes in the world.

His grin grew wider as she placed her hands tenderly upon his jaw. Those soft hands drew his head in closer until they touched foreheads. He continued to grin as she slid his head into contact with her muzzle. Her mouth touched the top of his nose, just before the coarse, darker fur started. It wasn't a kiss. No. But still felt good. Amazing more like.

Her simple, elegant beauty left him somehow with the strangest of feelings. He felt like she should be protected, not harmed. Cared for, not set alight. His crazy mind somehow found peace in her presence. It was totally insane, yet felt right. Here, in the masks ancient ruins, he, Dingodile had found peace. The low flickering light from the torches on the walls added a feeling of boldness to the mutant and a delighted smile graced his muzzle.

"Well slick. It's been fun working with you on our side this time."

"Yea," agreed Dingo. "I've had fun, roastin' bad guys with yew."

Coco's hand never left his face as she continued, "well you know. There's still a few more matches left before the fight against Oxide."

"Yep." He looked forward to those. They were sure to be lively and full of action and fun. With this bandicoot at his side, they were sure to win these critical final matches and beat Uka Uka and his chosen champions. Tiny and Crash were sure to take care of themselves too.

Silence fell upon the pair as they continued to enjoy each other's presence.

"Say, what's ya name sheela? I never managed to catch it."

"Coco Bandicoot."

Dingo's grin became lopsided as made sure to commit her name to memory. "Coco aye? Beautiful name for a beautiful sheela."

"You think I'm beautiful?" Coco smiled with delight as she ran one of her hands down the side of Dingo's chin.

"Yeap," Dingodile enjoyed the slight flush that flared up on her cheeks. Her smile became ever so bashful, as though his answer surprised her.

His hands at last seemed to remember they could move once more and they somehow found themselves around her waist.

"I don't think anyone's ever called me beautiful before."

Her disclosure awoke another odd feeling within Dingo. It was confusing. But somehow knowing that he was the first to call her beautiful brought more joy to his twisted heart than anything he had ever heard before.

Coco tilted her head to gaze into the tough hybrid's soul, "are you sure you have to go back?"

For the first time since they were alone, his grin faltered. His eyes flickered away from her questing gaze only to return a moment later, drawn to her by some unknown force. "Of course. I like you, but Cortex is me master. Me and Tiny... our place is with those guys. Your place is here, with ya' family."

"But if we win? If Cortex and Uka Uka get defeated once and for all?" The hope in her gaze melted something within Dingo's heart and he couldn't help but offer her a smile and reassurance while he considered his response.

"Then maybe...? I hope. Ah dunno..." A frustrated growl escaped Dingo's throat. Coco flinched, one hand left his face. A pang ripped through Dingo. _No! Don't fear me!_

"If we win, maybe you could come and live with Crash and me." Her offer was tinted with hope… and something more. Hope and a question. Hope that he would accept, hope that maybe they could be together as ...something.

A hopeful grin appeared on Dingo's face as he relaxed and tightened his hold on her. "Yea. Maybe."

The hope that illuminated her face dissolved into peace, but the unanswered question hung between then.

* * *

"Wish I'd said yes..." It was then that Dingo realized he was still in the armoury. That sweet moment was long since over.

A soft guttural growl escaped the mutant. If such feelings were here to stay then there was only one thing for it. "Gotta stop thinkin' of her. I can't get hit by them weird feelin's an' stuff again. I don't want to miss another shot at roastin' her brother."

Dingo was wrenched out of his own thoughts by nearby laughter and a massive paw as it hit his back. "Tiny think you think silly things again." Tiny Tiger giggled raucously before he seated himself on a nearby ammo crate once more.

"Alright, how long was I day-dreamin'?"

Tiny simply shrugged.

As the armoury fell into silence once more, Dingo couldn't help but let his mind wander back to that night he and Coco shared the most wonderful and confusing of moments.

* * *

Coco and Dingodile broke out of their hug at the sound of approaching footsteps. Sure enough, Crash and Tiny rounded the corner, triumphant smiles upon their faces.

"How did you two go?" Coco asked, her cheeks flushed.

Crash offered a thumbs up alongside another smile while Tiny simply stood grinning, his eyes darting between the two. They had won, they beat Oxide. But it wasn't over. The two sides were matched closely enough that was going to come down to whoever won the rest of the minor battles.

Now all that was left was for the two teams to fight it out with Uka Uka's side for the rest of the gems, Crystals and keys.

* * *

Round and round they went, each of the four desperate for victory on the volcanic mini race track. Dingo knocked Rilla Roo into the lava as he crossed the line onto his last lap. Now no one had a chance to win against his superior speed!

As he raced around the circle N. Brio came into sight, two laps behind him according to the scoreboard. The evil doctor smashed Coco off the track with a laugh that Dingo could hear over their engine noises. In a fit of rage, Dingo raced at the doctor and smashed him into the lava too. It killed his speed but filled the mutant with a extreme sense of pleasure. Before he could regain his speed, Rilla Roo sped past him and won the round for the gem.

Brio sidled up beside the fuming hybrid as Rilla danced a victory dance. "Don't think I can't see what's going on here. I'm just like you, a traitor when it suits but you and I both know that deep down we are bad guys. No matter what you want, you can't ever change that."

"What do yew know?! Nothing!" Snarled Dingo.

"I designed you, you fool. Once the games are over you will see. You're evil right to your core! Not even love can change that!" Doctor N. Brio broke out into laughter as he disappeared.

Dingo could still hear Brio's words as he was teleported to the safety of their warp room. He appeared next to his favourite bandicoot and half-heartedly accepted a hug from her.

"It's okay," her soft voice challenged the hate-filled tone of his creator. "I believe in you."

Dingo glanced down at the cute bandicoot and did his best to smile at her. He allowed himself to be led around the circular platform to the pad that teleported them out into the good team's common ground.

Did that mean his old team could see there was something between the two of them? What was between Coco and him anyways?

* * *

The rest of the bash passed in a blur to Dingodile. He remembered that the two of them lost most of their remaining games. No matter how many times he messed up, Coco was there to help calm him. He was thankful for her. Had it not been for her words and her touch, he would have probably stormed out to try and find a flamethrower so he could set his opponents alight and torch everything! The rules be damned!

Dingo remembered Crash and Tiny flying into the final fight versus Oxide. It went so far as a final tie breaker between Crash and Cortex.

The hybrid sulked on the sideline as he watched the final showdown. Coco approached the grumpy half croc and slipped into his arms. Her sudden warmth at his side cooled something inside and he did his best to enjoy the show with her. Tiny gave them both the odd look but quickly went back to watching the show each time.

Of course, Crash won. That Bandicoot was blessed with something. Dingo was sure of it. Or Cortex was cursed. Dingo grinned. Actually, that was a fun thought.

Four victors and their witch doctor stood together in the simple square balcony that overlooked the rest of the ancient ruins. These enchanted grounds had been home for the last few weeks. Fireworks painted the night sky with bangs, fizzes and all the colours of the rainbow. It was a happy time. At least, it would have been if one of their party hadn't expressed his wish to leave.

"Go? Why do you need to go? You just helped us beat Cortex and Uka Uka," softly implored Coco.

Dingo glanced at the bandicoot who had found her way to his right side. A sudden series of fireworks lit her pretty face with all the colours of the rainbow. The lights danced across her muzzle, highlights to her already breathtaking features. She was amazing. She could be his, yet as her delicate hand found its way to his own callused one Dingo felt something dark festering amidst the butterflies in his tummy. Maybe he should stay? It's what they had agreed upon earlier.

In his best attempt at shaking off all strange and sappy feelings, Dingo turned his muzzle to the night sky. An annoyed grunt escaped, his only reply as he tried to fight off the strange fuzzies that attacked him inside.

"You don't have to go you know. I'm sure my brother could find room for you and Tiny at our place." A light squeeze accompanied the care-laden words of Coco.

What were these strange feelings inside? An odd sense of wooziness slowly washed over him as he gazed back down into the smaller creatures eyes as she held his gaze, somehow aware of the conflict roaring within him. A strange feeling, almost as if he were sick bubbled lightly up inside. His right palm, the very one that held hers tingled lightly. Dingo shook his head in an attempt at clearing his system from the alien feelings. This wasn't right. None of it.

Brio was right. Released from Aku Aku's magic as victors, he could feel the darkness as it returned inside. He realized then that it had always been there. Somehow, the witch doctor had suppressed this darkness and allowed Dingo to enjoy a different life in a whole new way while they fought for good. If the evil within him was to return and consume him, he did not want to be anywhere near Coco. He could not afford to let himself or Tiny hurt her. _I 'ave to get out of here!_

"I'm sorry Sheela. I can't stay and that's final." Dingodile quickly slipped his hand out of Coco's grip and turned to face the dancing bandicoot behind them. "And you," the mutant dingo pointed a finger at Crash, "yew ain't no mate of mine. I still got a score to settle wit' you."

Crash grew a questioning look and gestured as if to ask why the sudden change of heart.

Instead of answering, Dingo shoved past Crash and stalked out of the bright victory chambers, into the night. He had to get away, return to Cortex, the base, his home. He had to return to his old life. A life where everything was simple. A life where everything made sense. A life where being evil was right and good was to be set on fire and destroyed.

The rough mutant dingo was joined by his best friend, who smiled maliciously as they walked in silence.

Meanwhile, the two bandicoots exchanged a glance, wondering why either of their new friends would possibly wish to join the enemy once again. Suddenly Crash grinned a cheeky grin and waggled his eyebrows. He could see something was up between his sister and Dingodile.

Coco could only turn to once again face the fireworks as the last of the display lit up the night sky. She did her best to hide the slight flush on her cheeks, but deep down inside was glad her brother knew. Even if she didn't know exactly what it was there was to know.

As the night faded into darkness once more Coco felt her brother join her in leaning on the railing that faced off into the night. A comforting hand found its way onto her arm and the two simply stood for a moment.

Whatever happened, Coco at least had Crash's support.

"I am afraid that what magic I had over them has lifted. I cannot stop either of them leaving. We can only hope that one day they will choose to return." Oh right, Aku Aku was still here.

Coco murmured her thanks to their guardian as she returned her eyes to the night sky.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_  
 **In case you haven't already guessed, the story starts after the events of Crash 4 when Crunch Bandicoot has joined the good side and this chapter mostly has flashbacks to Crash bash. I disregard all games newer than Crash 4 for this story as I don't like what they did with them and I think this leaves me open for more development.**

 **I have shipped Coco and Dingo for as long as I can remember. Around the time of Crash 3 for sure as I quickly started to annoy my brother with my cute ideas. CTR and then Crash Bash only added shipping fuel for me. Not that I knew what shipping was back then.**  
 **Since I got into fan fiction I have been meaning to put my ideas for these two into a story.**  
 **So, this is the story of how I think they (plausibly) got together.**

 **The cover image is thanks to Sony-Shock. I saw their image and knew that one of the scenes in my story has to reference the picture.**

 **Now who wants to see where things go with this unusual budding relationship?**


	2. Chapter 2

As the two mutant friends appeared in a massive ker-zap in the jungle a few miles out from their home, Dingo's mind continued to spin. One moment he would feel like burning his amazing Coco and her brother alive, the next... he wasn't entirely sure what he wanted to do to her. But he knew it didn't involve violence. It was the strangest thing ever. The feelings were more powerful now than when Aku Aku's magic was upon him. It was rather scary.

As he walked along, Dingo found his mind become sidetracked from his usual enjoyable thoughts of burning all in his path. It was like a big pack of angry butterflies would invade his tummy and not go away till thoughts of the bandicoot sheela did. Nice crispy, tasty critters were replaced by‚ well‚ her. He wondered what it would be like to take Coco with him. To run away and never see Cortex or any of his mutant friends ever again. They could be together, alone. Alone to do whatever they wanted to do together. _'But what would I want to do with her?'_ he wondered as yet another unwanted attack of the fuzzes invaded his system.

He was no longer under that witch doctor's spell, there should be no ties to that bandicoot. Yet the persistence of such feelings made Dingo sure that something had to be wrong with himself. None of the other minions who worked for Cortex ever had strange thoughts regarding the scare number of females they had encountered. 'Maybe I just caught somethin' off her.' A grin lit up the mutant dingo's muzzle. That had to be the answer! All he had to do now was avoid her for a while and let it go away! Then he was sure to go back to his regular pyro-loving self and life would make sense again. Simple! After all, he was headed back to his old evil master with his best friend by his side.

 _'_ _But do I want to avoid her?'_

"Tiny wonder... what you thinkin‚" The coarse speech of the mutant tiger brought Dindodlie back to reality.

"Huh... What mate?" Dingo shook his head to clear his unwanted thoughts.

"What Dingo think about?" Tiny Tiger asked once more.

"Oh. Nuthin‚ ... I just think I might have caught something off that bandicoot sheela." Dingo added a fake cough in for effect. He turned away as Tiny's expression screwed into deep thought, a difficult exercise for the brawny tiger.

Despite his numerous physical skills and his heavy build, Tiny was ever lacking in the brains department. Yet even the massive mutant tiger had begun to wonder if something strange had developed between the unusual pair during their time together on the same team. Some part of him was still an animal after all. Animals had instincts. And his instincts told him that his buddy Dingo and that Coco Bandicoot found each other attractive in some weird way. Tiny had even expected his friend to ditch Cortex in favor of this attraction. This what... his maybe bandicoot mate? Or something. It had to be something more than a simple cold. Tiny grimace in disgust. Maybe he had caught something from that bandicoot sheela.

After all‚ Tiny had been unable to spend the regular smash and burn time together with his best bro. Such a fun event always rolled around at least once every week. Tiny had lost count of the days since their conscription into the services of good, but he was sure they had missed more than one bro outing. Still, if Dingo wanted to get away from her then instinct told him that something was truly wrong with Dingo after all. Maybe it was all Aku-Aku's fault, messing around in their heads with his magic? An idea very slowly dawned upon the massive mutant. "Come. Tiny help!"

Before Dingodile could protest, the muscle bound big cat was barreling along, mutant croc on his back. They crashed and bashed through the bush getting ever closer to the temporary laboratory hidden in the wilds far away from Crash Bandicoot and his island. Dingo beat the muscular back of his companion, he tried to urge the beast to put him down! However, the bumpy ride was set to continue for some time as Tiny didn't seem to even notice the blows.

Dingo sighed. At least this would make for a fast trip home. Home, to do something far away from the most beautiful and confusing creature Dingo had ever met.

* * *

"Welcome home you two. It's good to see that despite your best efforts you aren't actually traitors," N. Gin greeted with a strong undercurrent of disdain in his tone.

The gloomy interior was enough to kill the adrenaline burst Tiny had. They were home. Well sort of. It was of course only a temporary secret laboratory after all.

"Don't disturb your master. He is busy working on a new experiment."

"What kind of experiment?" Asked Dingo.

N. Gin unleashed a crazy giggle. "You will find out."

Before he could imagine what kind of warped new creations his master had invented, or was in the middle of creating, the half crocodile mutant found himself pushed inside by Tiny.

"Dingo need help. He's sick."

"What am I...? His nurse?" N. Gin stormed off, a small trail of smoke escaped from the rocket on his head, the crazy scientist's mood had clearly taken a sudden turn for the worst.

"I'll be fine mate. Now let go!" Demanded Dingodile.

Suddenly unsure of himself and his friend's actions, Tiny did as requested. "Dingo need help. Tiny help."

"Yea, and what are you suppose to do mate?"

"Uh..." Tiny paused, as he searched for an answer. A thought struck like a boulder to the face and he lit up, "we go, we smash, Tiny and Dingo have fun. Fun help Dingo."

"You know, that might just be worth a try," conceded Dingodile. "Just let me grab my flamethrower."

A coarse laugh erupted from the big cat. This truly was a great idea to get his friend back to normal. Normal was good.

As the smaller mutant walked off Tiny gazed around the unwelcoming interior of their temporary abode. While he would have preferred to stay with the nice bandicoots because they were winners, Tiny had no idea how to go back to them now he was home. With a coarse sigh, the giant tiger lent against the cold grey wall of the evil base. Never mind the dumb bandicoots. He was here now. This was home and home was where he belonged. Dingo would be back soon. Soon they could have fun and be regular bad guys again. Bad guys, every bit as evil as their master had created them to be. Doing evil was simple. Being bad was fun. This would be easy right?

Yea.

Dingodile padded slowly to what he assumed was still his room and sat down. Unlike the welcoming temporary bandicoot residence in the ancient ruins were they held the games, home base was exactly how Dingo remembered it. Bare grey, silver and black walls everywhere. The occasional picture of Cortex and the occasional, rare picture of N. Gin was the only respite from the dull, uninspiring tone of their abode. Inside the cramped room Dingo was used to living in he spotted his pride and joy. His flame-thrower and its fuel tank sat wedged between the small bed and the bleak dark grey wall.

He sighed. Maybe he should have turned traitor and stayed with the bandicoots. Even if he had to battle his inner demons, it may have been worth it. After all, he could still have fun and torch stuff. It would just be different people and creatures he would be allowed to set alight. Maybe they'd even let him come back and torch Cortex for fun. So why did he return here?

 _'_ Well _, I sill don' wanna hurt that_ sheela _. At least this way, I'm far away, where I can't hurt her.'_ Dingodile sighed. He was unstable and dangerous without Auk-Auk's magic and he knew it. His mind was right after all. The need for her safety was greater than his desire for them to be together.

As Dingo slowly geared up for some fun, a simile graced features. As the straps tightened and the full weight of the half full fuel tank fell upon his back he let out a comfortable sigh. Okay, now it felt good to be back. The mutant crocodile lovingly caressed the side of his weapons muzzle as he picked it up. The smile he wore, grew in size. Ahhh how nice to feel his prized weapon once more. The hand on the nozzle slowly traveled along toward the stock and for the briefest of moments, Dingo couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like to run his hand along Coco's-

' _No! None of that!'_ "You're home now mate!" Dingo commanded himself to stop thinking about the most amazing and confusing bandicoot ever. Focus on the fun he was about to have with Tiny.

His trigger finger found its way home.

* * *

Pinstripe rolled up to his home in New Jersey. The sound of his cars meaty V8 drowned out and beep of his garage door opener. Here it was, his gangster hole he so loved, the wonderful place where his girlfriend was sure to be waiting for him after his week long trip across state. His recent deals had fattened his wallet substantially and added more cars to his fleet. It had been perfect.

As he pulled inside, something registered as out of the ordinary. He stepped out of his car and slammed the door. The space next to his car was empty. There should have been three vehicles in his rather large garage. The spot in the middle was empty! Why was it empty? Where was his Land Rover Defender? That defender was his go to incognito vehicle because it said nothing of the driver.

Tawna couldn't possibly have taken it out for a drive. Not after the last time he caught her joyriding in one of his precious vehicles. Or did she?

The nasty Potoroo yanked open his driver's side door and pulled his tommy gun out of a hidden compartment. He quickly snapped in a magazine and set off into the house, alert for the expected sounds of his missus.

The corridors felt longer than usual with their framed pictures and other trinkets on display. Everything was perfect. Except it was quiet. Too quiet. He eased the safety off and readied his trigger finger as he approached the lounge. Had there been an intruder? Was Tawna damaged or simply sleeping? This was strange. It was empty. Why was the lounge devoid of his bandicoot? He hurried over and felt the television. It was dead cold. How unusual for Tawna to not watch her favourite shows. If she had been home recently, this thing should at least hold some sauce of warmth. What was going on here?

He hastened toward the master bedroom. He slowly opened the door, careful not to disturb any potentially sleeping bandicoot who may lie within. His cold heart sank at the sight of a empty room. There was no point in checking any further. Between the missing vehicle and the deserted house it was clear that she had left with no intention to return.

With an annoyed snarl he opened fire on the bed, satisfaction filled him like fire as he ripped the once shared room apart. With a click, he discarded his magazine and stormed off to reload. Now to find where that bandicoot had gone.

Maybe it was time to contact his old master again. Cortex was okay to deal with for jobs, as long as the price was right. Maybe it was time to trade a job for some information instead. If his bandicoot had gone to the Pacific, one of Cortex's networks was sure to have spotted something.

* * *

With a flash the trio of heroes appeared close to their home on N-sanity beach. Crash drew in a massive breath and unleashed it slowly, a contented grin spread across his muzzle. Home.

Coco, smiled at the sight of their home a few hundred meters away, "thank you Aku-Aku."

"It is I who must thank you, children. Without your help, Uka-Uka would have claimed dominion over this land."

"Dingodile and Tiny helped too..." Coco trailed off as her voice broke.

Crash laid a comforting hand on her shoulder and offered an encouraging smile.

Coco sighed, "I guess it is good to be home at last though."

"Well my children, I have some things to tend to I will see the both of you another day." Aku-Aku took his leave and vanished to continue his duties elsewhere.

"I guess It's just you and me big bro." Coco began to walk but paused when she realized her brother was not following her. "Crash?" She turned to her brother only to see him gazing intently at something the opposite way to their home, far in the distance on the shore.

Crash squinted against the growing darkness. He was sure he saw the form of someone washed up far down the shore. He turned, concerned to face his sister and beaconed toward the distant form.

"What do you think it is?" Coco asked, uncertain.

Crash shrugged and grunted. He was going to check it out.

"Well ok then. Want me to help?"

Crash shrugged again, it was fine.

Enough looking, it was time to help. Crash rushed off. Coco took stock of the situation and quickly decided it was worth helping her bro out. Whoever or whatever it was up there, her assistance was likely to be of use.

Crash reached the site first only to freeze at the sight before him. Did his eyes deceive him? What was she doing here and how was it that she had washed up on his beach?

Carefully he approached the form of his longtime crush. The reason he first fought Cortex in the first place.

Tawna.

He knelt beside the unconscious bandicoot, uncertain of how to begin helping her still form.

Footsteps announced Coco's arrival, "what is it Crash?"

No answer.

Growing ever more concerned and unsure, Crash reached out and felt where he assumed her heat to be. There was a beat. But her skin was freezing.

"Is that... Tawna?"

Crash nodded.

Coco leapt into action, listening for signs of breathing and resting her fingertips over where she knew the pulse should be. It was there, but without much in the way of medical skills, she was unsure of how it related to her condition beyond telling them that Tawna was still alive.

Crash looked to his sister for support.

Coco glanced from her brother to his crush. She leant down and turned the downed bandicoot on her side. Nothing came out. That was bad. "I think she's taken in a lot of seawater. If I press on her chest, can you breathe into her mouth?"

Crash nodded and got to. Coco locked her fingers and pressed down as hard as she could into the center of Tawna's chest. Again and again she pressed down, second after nerve-wracking second dragging by as they worked. Suddenly Crash took a face full of seawater and Tawna began to cough and splutter as the water left her lungs.

The awakened bandicoot scurried away, shielding herself from whatever was over her only to realize one of the two creatures was Crash.

"Crash?" Her voice was hoarse and she shivered violently in the chill sea air.

Crash nodded eagerly.

Coco spoke up, "I'll get a fire going. Brother, please carry Tawna inside, we need to get her warm."

Crash promptly scooped up his crush and hastened to follow Coco.

* * *

Tawna sat wrapped in blankets next to the fireplace in the small homely house of Crash and Coco. Her clothes steamed on a rack next to the source of wonderful heat. Her head spun and she could hardly still believe she had made it to her goal. Despite feeling rather woozy, her head turned to face the heroic bandicoot nearby and she smiled.

"Thank you for saving me Crash."

Crash nodded back, no problem. He was clearly happy that she was safe.

Coco entered the lounge and paused at the sight of her brother and his crush sitting not quite next to each other beside the fire. She noted Crash's picture of Tawna that lived on the mantelpiece was still there. The scene before her made Coco think of Dingodile. Pain struck at her like a dagger to her heart and her breath caught unexpectedly. She took a deep breath and exhaled to try and calm herself. It would not do to break down now.

"Say, Tawna. What brought you here? I thought you were with Pinstripe?" Coco spoke up and the two bandicoots in front of the fire jumped slightly.

Crash flinched at the sound of the mutant's name. He really did not like that Potoroo.

After a few moments of building tension, Tawna spoke up, her gaze locked on the fire in front of her. "I was. All that has ended now. Looking back, it was the biggest mistake I ever made. I don't know, it all just felt so special at the time. He took me first to Chicago where we made our home. After Oxide attempted to turn the planet into a parking lot, he became a used car salesman in New Jersey. He might act nice most of the time around me, but his mean streak made him so controlling at the worst times. He got too much, I just had to escape. It took months of waiting and panning till he left town for some shady business deal. That's when I took my chances and fled. I took the first plane over to Australia and bought a small boat with the rest of the money I took. As you can see, that didn't go so well. But seeing the both of you, I'm glad that I crashed when and where I did."

Crash grunted with unamused concern. Was that so? Crash locked gaze with Tawna as she glanced from the fireplace to the one who had first risked it all to save her. Crash laid back, uncertain. He had wished for her to come back to him for so long. But now that she was here, was it really such a good idea? She had already left him once. What if she did it again?

Crash glanced back at his sister. She held his look. This was up to him to decide. It was clear from the steeled look her face that her dislike toward his crush had not changed. He sighed. His gaze floated back to Tawna. She was once more looking into the fire, mesmerized.

Maybe, just maybe this could work. But things would not heal instantly. Especially after being discarded for one of his most persistent enemies for so long. Hesitantly he shimmied over and laid an arm over her blanket enclosed shoulders. She snuffled with exhaustion and relaxed into his hold and Crash found himself holding her, unsure what to do next.

Coco took a seat further away from the fireplace and did her best to relax. The pain of Dingo's absence had seized her heart like a virus. Here, watching her brother's heart blossom in Tawna's company her pain rose in a cresting wave that threatened to crash through the rest of her system and consume her. She wished he was here at her side, just like Tawna had appeared and was now at her brother's side.

* * *

The following week seemed to both flash by and drag on forever in the Bandicoot household. Coco seemed to withdraw into her own solitude and was hardly seen, which left Crash with a rather awkward amount of time around Tawna. Her presence had thrown his cosy small world upside down. He found himself suddenly unsure of so many things, was it was okay to sit close to her, was it was okay to spend time alone with her and was it was okay to ogle her ...for she was still as stunning as always and she took his breath away whenever she entered the room. But more importantly, he was unsure about how he felt about her still rather sudden reappearance in his life. She showed no signs of wishing to leave or return to how her life had been. In fact, if his befuddled and stunned mind was correct, she rather seemed to enjoy the quiet life with him, although she largely ignored Coco's presence.

The marsupial's mind returned to the moment as he kicked up a heap of sand and almost fell as his foot connected with the dense wet sand beneath. The ocean sparkled in the moonlight as it lapped against the shore of the beach close to where a certain family of bandicoots lived. The soft lapping of the sea against the shoreline was the only sound to be heard. Two sets of footprints trailed along the otherwise clean and free beach. The cause of said footprints strolled side by side. The lankier female held herself slightly awkwardly while the shorter male was tense as he fiddled with his yo-yo.

Tawna broke the silence with a soft cough. "So, um... Crash?"

The bandicoot in question glanced at his companion, "mmm?"

"I know you're not yet ready to try 'us' again, but can I... uh, hold your hand? I really would like to."

Crash Bandicoot thought for a few moments. Then thought for a few more. Tawna's expression took on a hint of slight panic before he pocketed his yo-yo, stepped closer and offered his hand. Tawna tentatively accepted his offer and together they continued forth in the night.

Crash quickly found himself smiling. Despite his reservations, it still felt nice to be close to Tawna. While the time away had been hard due to her being with another mutant, it seemed his heart had clearly continued to hold the special flame for her. Whatever decisions his head and heart had to make, he could treasure this moment at least.

* * *

Coco brushed the curtain aside and was greeted by the sight of two bandicoots as they walked hand in hand down the beach. She smiled.

If Crash could get Tawna back with him, maybe she could get her Dingo. She found herself looking forward to her next encounter with Cortex's group. Hopefully, Dingodile could run into her.

While he had practically left her to return to Cortex once, Coco was sure she had discovered something special between them. Maybe, just maybe he really did feel something too.

Her gaze rose to the stars above and she found herself praying to whoever was listening; please. Please bring my Dingo to me.

* * *

A month after his return to Cortex's side, Dingo began to feel better. Or at least he was sure he was better.

Okay, maybe just a bit better? He felt okay.

He felt safe in his darkness and strong in his rage. His desire to burn things and roast tasty critters. Roast critters went well on toast. The exception? Whenever thoughts that wonderful Bandicoot filled his mind. He wanted her, his soul yearned for her. It was confusing, it was wrong. Cortex would be sure to punish him if ever he discovered he still harboured feelings for an enemy.

As far as any of the other minions were concerned, he was fine.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

Life was as it should be.

In the middle of a mission for cortex, Dingo was proven wrong.

Tiny struck up conversation as they made their way through the bush toward the nearby town. "Why Dingo and Tiny leave?"

"We don't belong with bandicoots, mate." Reasoned Dingodile. Of course that was only half of the truth, but he hoped his friend would let it pass.

"But why? ... They be nice to Tiny. Nice to Dingodile. Cortex never nice to Tiny or Dingo."

"We're bad guys... not good guys. Okay?" a strong hint of annoyance entered the part-crocodiles voice.

"Was it... bandicoot sister?" Wondered the mighty cat out loud.

Dingo felt himself tense up. He had hoped that his illness had gone unnoticed but now was unsure of what to do next. How much did his blockheaded mate see? Had Tiny caught an illness as well? Was it the type of disease that could spread? Or was this just a delayed follow up on what had been said on their trip home?

"Well...?" The slow question brought Dingodile out of his own head. "I think so. Just don't go telling anyone else I'm not feeling well. We don't want to make our masters more pissed of than they already are." Growled Dingodile.

"For you, Tiny shut up." Conversation over, the mutant punched a tree over before he soldiered onwards through the bushlands toward the location their master had told them to attack.

Dingodile grinned. It was a shame their master had insisted upon creating another brute to join the gang. Dingo admired his mate's handiwork, he was sure the new, muscle-bound bandicoot Cortex was working on could never casually punch a tree over like Tiny did. What was Cortex's thing with bandicoots? He shrugged, it didn't really matter if Cortex was losing it or not. They had a fight to enjoy soon. All this was also sure to build up to another attack on Crash's peaceful lifestyle. Now there was something Dingo could get behind! He put on a burst of speed to catch up to Tiny Tiger. Enough mind things, time for fighting!

* * *

Crash Bandicoot lay at ease on the picturesque beach on N. Santity Island. The sound of waves lapping on the shore was broken only by the occasional bang bang of their latest addition, Crunch as he worked in his house. It was a good day to do nothing. They had all the food they could eat, all the company they needed and best of all, no sign of Cortex of his minions. Tawna was chilled out nearby and Crash couldn't help but sneak the odd glance her way.

Under the shade of the treeline, Coco Bandicoot's kart gave a sudden rev before it expelled a puff of smoke and gave out. She sighed to herself. At this rate there was no way she would have a race worthy kart before their monthly fun race around the island.

Coco put her laptop to sleep and stood up. _'I'll have one more go later... but for now...'_ Her gaze fell upon her brother and his girlfriend in all but name chilling out and a smile lit her muzzle. At least those two were having a great time, not that Crash was ever hard to please.

Not wishing to disturb the mutant bandicoots she took off toward the house. Her pace was measured and sedentary with only the slight crunch of sand and the sound of the surf hitting the shore as background noise. In what felt like no time at all, she had reached the set of buildings their little community called home. Crunch's brand new, rough sand brick home stood off to the side of their own simple home. She could hear a hammering from within as the tough bandicoot worked on some sort of project of his own making.

On the far side of the houses, she could see Polar and Pura who chased one another around the palm trees. Although it looked like a lot of work to Coco, she supposed that for the two little athletic critters, the frequency of their fast paced games must mean they were purely loaded with fun.

As much as they were a tight family unit who were always happy to spend time together, it made Coco glad that they all had something they each could do to pass the time away from each other. _'Even if my brother's chosen act is always to relax and do nothing. Sometimes I wonder how such a lazy bandicoot ever beat Cortex in the first place.'_

With a light push, the circular door granted access and a swirl of color within the small structure caught Coco's eye. Her smile became more pronounced. It was always great to see their guardian Aku Aku. Even on a day like this, she couldn't help but feel just that much more at ease around the ancient mask-bound spirit.

"Hello, Coco. Had enough of the sun already?" The kind tone of Aku Aku broke the indoor quiet.

"Well...no. It's my kart. I think I got something wrong on my computer and over juiced it again."

"Oh, I see. I'm sure you will find a way to fix it before the coming race."

"Thanks, Aku Aku."

Coco relaxed on one of the cushions near the unlit fireplace and closed her eyes. She allowed her mind to wander and after a few moments, pondered a question out loud. "Do you ever wonder why Dingo and Tiny did that?"

"Did what?"

"Didn't come back with us. You know... after we won the tournament to forever decide who was better. We all won. But then they left."

"You continue to carry feelings for this Dingodile?"

Coco jerked, her eyes open in shock as she stared at the witch doctor. "No way!"

Aku Aku's only response was the lift of a solo eyebrow.

"Oh, I don't know." Coco collapsed back onto the cushion. Her gaze roamed the ceiling as if the answers to all her problems existed somewhere on the plain woodwork above. "Sometimes I miss him. Sometimes I dream of having him here, by my side. I never had a boyfriend before."

Aku Aku held his silence as he glided a little closer to his precious bandicoot.

Just as the silence felt about ready to burst, Coco spoke up once more. "Dingo and I really seemed to hit it off. I just thought that maybe he would stay with us and not go back to his old master because... I dunno. ...Maybe, just maybe he felt something too..." A stirring of waterworks crept to the edge of the bandicoot's eyes. "I guess I was wrong." It swelled against the dam and threatened to break loose, spilling forth a flood of tears in front of Aku Aku. As the waters swirled within her, Coco's mind continued to dwell on how things could have been had Dingodile decided to stay with them.

If he had decided to stay with her.

"There, there my child. It has been many months but I am sure that if he did feel something then he will still remember you fondly now."

"Are you sure."

"Of that I am. It took Crash over two years to get Tawna back. Now look at him."

"Yea well, even when he does nothing things always work out for my brother." Coco let out a slow shuddering breath. "Do you think there is there something I can do to find out if he does like me back?"

"I am no master of romance, so I am unable to help you there, my child."

"Right. But when he fought Crash recently he really looked like he wanted to kill my brother. After beating him and helping Crunch, again Dino again stayed with Cortex!" Coco paused for a moment, now rising from the chair visibly agitated. "It's like... like I might have been imagining things and Dingo really doesn't care about me!"

"That is simply not true Coco. My magic may have forced him to join our side for the games, but his interactions with you were all genuine. Even your brother could tell there was something between you two."

"But what if it was your magic?"

Aku Aku failed to answer for a few moments until an idea stuck. "I have one idea. You remember how much he appeared to enjoy racing you when Oxide came?"

"Yes, it was run to race against him too. But he didn't like me all the way back then."

"Of that, I'm not so sure."

 _'Really!?'_ Coco glanced up at the witch doctor suspiciously.

Aku Aku continued unaware of the effect his words had, "I wonder, what would happen if you fixed up your kart and drove out in search of him. I have seen him driving his own kart recently when their base was on an island not too far from here."

"Really? You think if I found him and raced him that I dunno... he might come with me?" Coco asked, her voice filled with hope.

"I am sure that if you found him and gave him a race that the two of you would discover some answers."

"Right." Well, that answer was at least a whole lot better than nothing. Coco opened her laptop and prepared to figure out how to tune her kart for maximum acceleration and the best handling for forest trails that she could. This whole romance thing would be much smoother if nothing decided to blow up.

An idea stuck and she opened up a new tab to investigate alternatives to her current engine system.

* * *

Dingo lay on his rock hard bed, his gaze fixed upon the ceiling. It might have been over a week but his bitterness was still smouldering.

"That bandicoot. Beat me again he did..." A growl escaped and he snapped his jaws angrily. Victory should have been his. In fact, victory would have been his. If only his mind stayed with him and not kept wandering off. He felt as though he was slowly going insane. Every day over the past six months had been a slow change back to good ol' normal Dingodile, but seemlying further away from _his_ normal than he had ever been. Every day now, he found himself suddenly filled with inner peace when his mind came to rest on Coco. How in the world he, Dingodile, flamebearer of Cortex and scourge of the Australian wastes, ever found such peace was beyond him. And it only got worse! Every day, it was a constant battle to give his all to Cortex and the malicious orders he was given, which had resulted in frequent scuffs with his fellow minions. Why, why did his brain have to do this to him? What was so special about this female bandicoot that the mere, wistful thought of her now made the darker corners of his mind recede? He didn't even know where she was!

He clearly didn't hate her. Hate was easy. He hated Crash. He disliked Crunch. He hated Cortex. Oh yes, some days he wished he could set Cortex on fire and watch as his boss slowly crumbled into ash. No, what he felt continued to be something completely different. It was conflicting, uplifting. It absolutely drove him crazy. Crazy enough to throttle his own tail some nights. At night, all he could think about was if she was going through the same turmoil he was, tortured by the same demons that blew away his darkness leaving a void that only she seemed to fill. A void he never knew existed till she had filled it. But he had no way of asking, no way of knowing. Dingo felt like it was driving him insane. Like any day now he might snap, burn something important and get thrown behind bars to rot, or worse.

The only way to put her from his mind was good old tried and true method: violence. Fun. Torching everything in his path. And, speed. His cart was the most used vehicle any of the minions owned.

Actually, owned was probably too strong a word for it. Everything belonged to Cortex. He was simply allowed to drive the machine, that he had put so much effort into. If Cortex were dead, however, then he would be the owner of his own kart.

Speak of the devil, Cortex's voice ripped the conflicted hybrid from his thoughts. "Attention all minions. Assemble in my lab now."

Dingo rolled his eyes. "Sure thing boss. Wish I 'ad ditched ya with that Crunch Bandicoot. He seemed to 'ave the right idea. Least he'll be getting good tucker right now. Alls we got is scraps. I didn't even wanna to come t' this hole." Despite his resentment, Dingo rose with a disgruntled sigh. A meeting sounded better than lying around on a hard bed daydreaming. Maybe they would even be allowed to go terrify and touch the locals of their small island. That would be fun. With a glance at his beloved flamethrower, he stormed out. Maybe betraying Cortex and permanently switching sides would be fun too.

* * *

The doors to Cortex's backup laboratory hissed open as Dingo entered the room. The bleak space was filled with a collection of fellow mutants and regular staff. The many computers that lined the far wall were filled with staff working away on one project or another for their master. N'Brio faced the pack of mutants.

"You're late." N'Brio scowled.

"Bite me."

Surprised murmurs ripped across the rest of Cortex's minions.

"I have something better in mind." Cortex wandered out from behind a messy workbench that was taller than he was. "I know many of you are bound to be as angry as Dingodile. I myself already wish to find a way to make that bandicoot pay for his actions. I have a new plan to crush this pest once and for all."

There it was, Dingo noted. Cortex clearly had not changed. Even with Uka Uka around, it was all about him and personal vendetta. Even with so many defeats at the hands of this bandicoot, it was still all about him and his problems with Crash. What happened to the days of world domination? What happened to removing other persons of power who did not belong? None of the minions really seemed to matter much either. Even those such as Tiny or Rilla Roo, who had been some of his earliest minions, were more often than not treated like dirt by Cortex whenever it suited him. As his master droned on about setting up a new base on another island closer to the coast of Australia, Dingo allowed his mind to wander. It sounded like the time to betray his master was almost at hand. Something he should have done a long time ago. He wondered if that cute Bandicoot, Coco remembered him. Maybe he could try and make friends with her again. Hopefully that sickness that hit him after the games would stay away this time.

He heard mention of two weeks till they were to move out and grinned. Two weeks would be plenty of time to fix up his trusty cart, soup it up for maximum speed, take his flamethrower and go. He only had to find a way to make it off this island. The Bandicoots all lived on one of the surrounding islands much further away. If he could secretly find out which one, that could make his life a lot easier and his escape a lot faster.

A grin ripped across his muzzle. This was going to be _fun_.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_

 **Minor Tweaks have been made to the first chapter in the process of reading this one for posting. I would like to thank my brother, Havoc for proofreading them both.**

 **And yea, Tawna crashes into the picture. CocoDile is still the primary focus of this here tale but I'm tempted to include a bit more of Crash and Tawna.**

 **It would be great to hear from you and I'll try and get this next chapter up when I can.**


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